Who is spreading rumors that my filial piety towards them has changed?

"You said it yourself, don't just throw rumors at me... But what I said is true, I didn't spend much time with him anyway. I was only in the East China Sea for a few days, and Mingkong was busy with other things all day long, how could he have time to spend with me?"

Besides, I have important matters to oversee myself.

Wan Hua glanced at her younger sister Xiao Zhi with surprise, thinking that she didn't seem to be lying, and that her personality wouldn't stoop to lying. But what important business could someone like her, who used to relax and have fun, possibly have, besides being Ming Kong's vessel for pleasure?

"Tell me about it."

Xiao Zhi wanted to speak, but swallowed her words:

"...It's not convenient to talk about it right now. It's not confirmed yet, and it's a matter of great importance, so we can't speak rashly!"

This puzzled Wan Hua greatly, who said incredulously:

"You're the Princess Consort of Chu, Mingkong's very mother. What are you afraid of if you speak recklessly?"

"You're the old one! You're a few days older than me. If I'm an old mother, what are you? An old ugly woman?"

"Hey! You're really pushing your luck!"

After all that commotion, the two beautiful noblewomen were exhausted—exhausted from the physical fight and the verbal battle. They lay on the ground, ignoring each other, and left the memorials on the table for whoever wanted to deal with them.

The "important matter" that Xiao Zhi mentioned was naturally what she had overheard earlier: Jin Yu and Pei Mi intentionally made Ming Kong not use his internal energy and directly gave them "five sets of internal equipment." No matter how you looked at it, it was all for the purpose of getting pregnant and using the baby to gain a position.

Jin Yu doesn't care now. That girl suits Ming Kong's taste and has a sweet tongue. Xiao Zhi likes Jin Yu quite a bit. The key thing is that Pei Mi seems to be planning to get pregnant as well!

Although Mingkong had his own things to do during the trip to the East Sea, Xiao Zhi didn't feel neglected. She kept a close eye on Pei Mi's suspicious behavior throughout the trip.

There was no result, of course. Mingkong was preoccupied with finding Cat's mother and had no mind on anything else.

After lying down for a while, Xiao Zhi took out the jade pendant that Qing Se had given him and placed it on Wan Hua's belly to measure its size.

Hmm, the jade pendant isn't responding!

"What are you doing?" Wan Hua thought Xiao Zhi had rested enough and was about to start fighting again.

"It's okay, I'll just give it a try. Let me check it again and I'll explain to you once I have a conclusion."

Just as Xiao Zhi put away the jade pendant, Chu Mingkong appeared in the pavilion.

Xiao Zhi and Wan Hua wanted to fix their disguises, but realizing they'd already been seen, they gave up and continued to lie idly in front of the desk. Their bodices were stretched high, revealing glimpses of their collarbones and shoulders. Their long, sexy legs, each with its own unique charm, were intertwined, like a beautiful concubine drunk with wine, their bodies entwined, their flesh blending together, and a delicate fragrance wafting through the air.

But what appears on screen is actually quite different from the reality. Neither mother nor baby touched a drop of alcohol; they simply didn't want to work.

Wan Hua handled all the affairs on her own for a month, and when she got tired, she gave up. Xiao Zhi, on the other hand, had a leisurely month, and once she got used to it, she couldn't go back.

Chu Mingkong came at just the right time. He had come over a few times before, but when he found that they were still arguing, he would quietly avoid them. Now that he found that they were tired of making a fuss, he came over to greet and comfort them.

With both stunningly beautiful women lying down, Chu Mingkong couldn't very well sit there pretending to be dignified, so he immediately lay down between them as soon as his bottom touched the ground.

The two sexy and alluring beauties also shifted their bodies and lay down on either side of Chu Mingkong. But these two were no pushovers. As soon as their delicate and beautiful bodies pressed against him, they immediately began to grope him.

She grabbed him with her two delicate hands, one above and one below, and he couldn't escape even if he wanted to.

Chu Mingkong surrendered and was captured without resistance. He was still figuring out how to start the conversation with his first words to appease him.

"This is too much! Why are you subjecting me to such severe torture as soon as I lie down?"

"You're only coming now? Where were you before? You were hiding earlier?" Wan Hua's eyes narrowed as she glanced at Chu Mingkong, her jade-like hand sliding down, her soft palm swirling around him.

This action still had a deterrent effect on Chu Mingkong, especially since his current mental and spiritual pain was equivalent to mental testicular pain, and he was worried that his mother and baby would actually cause him to have a real testicular pain—but of course, such a thing would not happen.

Although the two mothers are currently working together to deal with their son, if one of them strikes first, before Chu Mingkong even has a chance to complain, the other will definitely betray him and send him to the cold palace for a few days.

"That's right, Wan Hua, put in more effort! Don't be lenient with Ming Kong's tough exterior. Give him a taste of his own medicine. He might be benched for a whole month without a fight. I'm worried for you!" Xiao Zhi added fuel to the fire, seemingly genuinely heartbroken and feeling indignant on Wan Hua's behalf.

"I didn't expect that Zhi'er was on my side too? I can't bear to do it, so come on~!" Wan Hua grabbed Xiao Zhi's hand, and that jade hand slowly slid down the handle of the whisk, the warmth of her palm reaching the spot where Wan Hua had been holding it.

Look, they've already started scheming and backstabbing...

Chu Mingkong was still trying to figure out how to appease him, but he couldn't find a suitable angle to start.

"How about I take Wanhua baby out for a month sometime?" he tentatively suggested.

“A few days should be enough. In reality, I only spent one or two days there, most of which was spent on the road.” Xiao Zhi was telling the truth.

"What does Zhier want with you?"

Wan Hua stopped there, not saying much. She could sense Chu Mingkong's subtle fatigue, and her soft bosom pressed against his face, almost stuffing it into his mouth.

"Alright, it just so happens that Mingkong, you haven't been able to keep your mother company for a nap in a long time. You used to be able to sneak a peek before, but now that you don't have to sneak a peek anymore, why do you seem to have less time to rest together?"

"Alright, let's rest first~ Consort Wanhua must be exhausted after this past month, let's lie down together!"

Chapter 136 Aunt Gu: I can't be the only one with a bloated stomach!

In the City Lord's Pavilion, in front of the desks filled with memorials, only Chu Mingkong sat alone, handling the affairs of the past month.

Many of these had already been processed, and the remaining ones were memorials that had accumulated in recent days. Although they looked numerous, they were actually relatively easy to process; the only problem was the large volume of reading material.

It's likely that Wan Hua deliberately left these simple items for Xiao Zhi, so that there would be enough to cover her needs without putting too much pressure on her. Unfortunately, Xiao Zhi chose to display them as soon as she returned.

Chu Mingkong finished the task in no time, put the red-inked brush aside, and felt quite accomplished.

He didn't sleep during his lunch break; instead, his two mothers lay comfortably, their minds drifting into a hazy, dreamlike state. However, their hands remained in the same gripping position.

In a hazy drowsiness, his slender hand unconsciously slid along, bringing great challenges to Chu Mingkong's work of handling memorials.

The slight movement of Chu Mingkong dropping his pen earlier caused the two beautiful women to slowly wake up.

Xiao Zhi was the first to wake up. She sat up and calmed herself down before realizing that Chu Mingkong had taken care of everything for her.

“Mingkong, why didn’t you sleep when I told you to? You secretly got up and finished everything.” Xiao Zhi didn’t want him to be busy with these things, or rather, she didn’t want him to be too busy.

"I didn't sleep, I just woke up early. There's a whole table of memorials piled up here, I can't just leave them lying around, can I?"

The work is just sitting on the table; if you don't do it, I don't do it, and I just wait for the work to be done by myself?

"I was just arguing with Wan Hua. I couldn't really back down now that I'd just come back, otherwise I'd be at a disadvantage. Sometimes, backing down for a moment can mean backing down for a lifetime!"

This has even turned into experience... Chu Mingkong smiled. If it's just a little bickering, that's fine. But if they're always respectful and polite, it's actually a bit distant. However, this kind of fight shouldn't turn into the kind of explosive atmosphere it had at the beginning.

"It seems I was worrying too much and ruined Zhi'er's good time." Chu Mingkong looked ashamed and remorseful.

"That's not it!"

"But I'm also thinking that these things can't be left for the mothers to handle for so long. I just looked through those memorials. Although they are all important matters such as economy and agriculture, they will eventually be managed by Tianya Tower itself. It doesn't matter if it's sooner or later."

"You make it sound so easy. If you don't keep a close eye on things like the economy, agriculture, and land, what if merchants infiltrate Tianya Tower and use their wealth to gain power? Will it still be considered your own?"

"That's true, but Zhi'er Baobao values ​​power too much. Only those with strength can have power. After the sects started getting involved in secular affairs, military power is no longer that important. Having an extremely strong person to keep things in check is the real key."

Instead of worrying about those merchants trying to use their wealth to gain entry into Tianya Tower, you should be thinking about the day such a thing actually happens, and how to get Yunhan to help you get revenge—that would be much more satisfying!

As Chu Mingkong spoke, he mentioned his own ideas again.

Not taking charge of things doesn't mean completely ignoring them. You can entrust most, or even all, matters to Tianya Lou's professional staff to handle, but periodically review the files and records to see how Tianya Lou handles certain related matters.

Then, Tianya Lou will submit work summaries quarterly, mid-year, and year-end, along with undercover visits (casual travel) to investigate the situation in the countryside. If there are any problems, they can go directly to Tianya Lou to find solutions.

This is somewhat like a company shareholder looking at the company's earnings report, and that's exactly what Chu Mingkong was thinking.

Xiao Zhi and Wan Hua are free to choose what to do, but Chu Mingkong does not want them to be forced to be tied to their desks and exhaust themselves. In the future, it would not be unreasonable to even entrust the management of Xiling to Wenqing Pavilion and Xiaoxiang Qin Academy.

If something really goes wrong, you can just hold the people in the lower ranks accountable. Xiao Zhi's confidence comes from having Chu Mingkong as her backing, not from working herself to the bone in this small room in the City Lord's Pavilion to build up her prestige.

It feels like we're putting the cart before the horse. When power transcends the individual, personal strength is the greatest form of prestige.

This wasn't the first time Xiao Zhi had heard Chu Mingkong mention this idea, but this time he explained it in more detail, outlining the general framework of his concept. She couldn't help but marvel at the brilliance of the idea.

"Did Rong'er come up with this for you?"

"Rong'er will need to refine the details later, but this concept is still unique in the world!" he said shamelessly.

But there's nothing wrong with it; it's truly an innovation of this world, even if it was stolen from a previous life.

"But isn't this too hasty? Maybe we should take it slow. This is like handing over the keys to our family business to someone else!" Xiao Zhi still had some concerns.

In Chu Mingkong's mind, it was perfectly normal for shareholders to remain behind the scenes and entrust matters to professionals. However, Xiao Zhi did not see it that way. She was not at ease letting others control her family business, since she had never seen a precedent for it.

"This was bound to happen sooner or later. Letting go too soon will only cause trouble, and it will happen eventually anyway. It's better to let Tianyalou get used to it sooner. Besides..."

Chu Mingkong suddenly stopped speaking. Seeing that he was being mysterious, Xiao Zhi pressed him for an answer:

"Besides what?"

"Besides, even though I secretly took a detour through Baihu Plain to return to Xiling to participate in that martial arts competition just to save face, I did spend a lot of time and effort."

But now I feel that the most important thing in the entire Xiling is the Qingxin Mansion where you all live, not anything else. The most precious thing I obtained during the martial arts competition seems to be my baby pheasant!

Xiao Zhi couldn't stand his nonsensical remarks, so she seriously discussed important matters with him!

That unexpected remark made her heart flutter and her heart pound...

Every woman inevitably has romantic fantasies about men and women when she is young, but the reality is that even the romance that can be felt in ghost stories is far more "love and affection" than one's own arranged marriage.

But when she's with her son, she can always find that romantic fantasy that she only had when she was young and naive!

It was naive and immature... But even after becoming a mature adult, no matter how much wisdom and experience I gain from life, deep down I still yearn for that beautiful naivety of the past.

"It seems to be me?" Xiao Zhi smiled, pretending to be serious and angry.

"That's definitely 'seems,' because it 'must' be me!"

Wan Hua suddenly sat up and changed the subject, stopping Xiao Zhi's overflowing maternal instincts.

"Look at you, after just a few words from Mingkong, you're already feeling all teary-eyed. I touched my hand and it was all wet. When I first returned to Xiling, Zhier, you had such a sour face!"

Xiao Zhi gritted her teeth in anger, as her sister Wan Hua had completely ruined the pleasant atmosphere!

"What business is it of yours? Mingkong said it seems to be me, so it must be me. You didn't even consider Wanhua. Mingkong, just tell her so quickly and say what's on your mind. Your mother will back you up!"

Chu Mingkong closed his eyes, straightened his back, and lay down in a death pose to play dead. But even though he was lying down, there was still something sticking out on his body. After being groped and examined for the entire lunch break, it was now making its presence felt.

Xiao Zhi had been watching for a long time and reacted quickly to take control. Wan Hua had no choice but to give Chu Mingkong, who was pretending to be dead, a bewildered slap in the face.

Chu Mingkong had just experienced something similar with the two Yongzhen, but unexpectedly, he was being treated the same way again at the City Lord's Pavilion.

After Xiao Zhi settled in, she inexplicably thought of Pei Mi's matter. Since it wouldn't be appropriate to bring it up directly, she decided to indirectly bring up the issue of having offspring:

"Mingkong, there are now two young ladies in the manor, but... do you have any plans to have another child?" What Xiao Zhi actually wanted to ask was about Pei Mi.

But Chu Mingkong didn't understand the deeper meaning. Now, whenever children were mentioned, the first things that came to mind were naturally Maomao, Jiao'er, and Aunt Gu's belly...

Could it be that baby pheasant has figured out what Aunt Gu is doing?